The present invention relates to a device for locking and unlocking closed doors to the interior of a motor vehicle.
In particular it relates to a device having a lock assigned to every door with a locking element swivelably supported at the door and having retaining means cooperating with the latter, wherein the locking element is a structural component which is spring-loaded relative to the unlocking position and engages behind the pin-like retaining means in its locking position.
Such a device is already known commercially, but in this device the actuation is effected exclusively manually. There are already devices for locking and unlocking closed motor vehicle doors by motor, but in these cases the locking element or a power take-off element of a drive device is reciprocated in a straight line (DE-OS 31 20 000, DE-OS 35 16 991). This is not provided in the device according to the invention.
In locks of doors to the passenger compartment of motor vehicles a plurality of operating positions are conventionally and generally known:
A The so-called unlocking position in which the door can be pulled opened from the outside or pushed open from the inside without actuating additional mechanisms. PA1 B The first closing stage, also called the safety or lean-against position, in which the almost closed door is incorrectly locked but is still held closed. It is not possible to open the door by pulling or pushing in this position. PA1 C The second closing stage or locked position in which the door is correctly closed and locked and cannot be opened simply by pulling or pushing.
These three lock operating positions can also be achieved in locks with a construction differing from the lock concerned here by a correspondingly adapted motorized actuating drive.
If the above-mentioned operating position C can be achieved in all doors simultaneously by the closing movement of a key inserted into a lock, this is known as a so-called central locking system.
If all locks of the doors to the passenger compartment of a motor vehicle are in the operating position pertaining to the second locking stage, this is also designated as the anti-theft position.
In the device according to the present application, on the other hand, central locking (operating position D) is understood as an operating state of the entire closing system in which all door locks are in operating position C, but where it is not possible to open the doors from the outside because then the actuating lever or actuating button on the door handle does not function. However, every door can be opened easily from inside the passenger compartment if the so-called locking button or a corresponding lever located on the door is actuated first.
Finally, there is another operating position in the device according to the present application for protection in which the doors can only be unlocked by electric motor actuation. This position can also not be changed, e.g. when a window pane is broken in and the locking button is pulled. Since this operating position can only be fed to so-called central electronics and from the latter to an actuating motor assigned to the actuating element from the outside via the door key and can likewise only be changed--with the exception of an emergency unlocking means still to be discussed--via the actuating motor, this operating position is to be designated here as the anti-theft position (operating position E).